Sarah Williams: Reflecting on the Past 6 Months and Future Plans for 2024 – Insights, Challenges, and Adventures.
Release Date: 08/01/2024
Vicki Anstey: Overcoming Limitations, Conquering Fears, and Breaking Records—From SAS Challenges to Rowing the Pacific and Cycling 3,000 Miles Across America.
Tough Girl Podcast
After 20 years in a relationship that limited and stifled her, former advertising professional, turned fitness pioneer and award-winning entrepreneur, Vicki Anstey became (age 41) one of the first ever women to participate in Channel 4’s ‘SAS Who Dares Wins’, reaching the final stages after 11 days in extreme conditions at an altitude of 3,000ft in Chile. In 2021, she and 2 other women, the Girls Who Dare, set a new World Record for rowing unaided across the Pacific Ocean, confronting her fear of deep, open water to do so. It took 60 days, 17 hours and 6 minutes. Her latest endeavour (a...
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Charlotte Bowens: From a Health Crisis to 50-Mile Ultramarathon Finisher—Creating VestaPak for the Plus-Size Community in Outdoor Sports
Tough Girl Podcast
Charlotte Bowens: Founder of Conscious Gear and trailblazing innovator behind VestaPak, the world's first plus-size hydration vest. From university administrator to entrepreneur, she fearlessly reshapes the outdoor industry. Motivated by a personal health scare, she champions inclusivity and empowers the plus-size community to embrace an active lifestyle. Founding Story: A Transformation and a Vision It all started with a health scare that jolted Charlotte's life. An unexpected visit to the emergency room revealed high blood pressure, high cholesterol, severe depression, borderline...
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Tiffany Coates - Live from the Armchair Adventure Festival. Sharing more about her motorcycle adventures around the world.
Tough Girl Podcast
In this episode, we sit down with Tiffany at the Armchair Adventure Festival in Mount Edgcumbe. Join us as we explore the world through the eyes of Tiffany Coates, recognised as the world’s foremost female motorcycle adventurer. Tiffany has spent over twenty years exploring six continents on two wheels. With hundreds of thousands of miles under her belt, she continues her adventures both solo and as a sought-after motorcycle tour guide, captivating audiences at adventure travel events worldwide. Her journey began with a memorable trip alongside her best friend, Becky. With just two months...
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Candida Louis - An Indian girl riding around the World. 10 Years of full-time Travel. Sharing her story live at the Armchair Adventure Festival.
Tough Girl Podcast
Candida Louis, a 28-year-old adventurer from Hubli, South India, embodies the spirit of wanderlust and the pursuit of freedom through motorcycle riding. From a young age, she shared unforgettable rides with her father, sparking a passion that led her to become a motorcyclist herself. Over the past 12 years, she has transitioned from a pillion rider to the one in the front seat, fully embracing the thrill of the open road. A birthday gift of her first motorcycle marked the beginning of an incredible journey that fuelled her dreams of riding around the world. After spending five years working at...
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Jen Scotney - Running Through the Dark: The rise and fall of an ultrarunner. A story about resilience, about never giving up, and about battling through the night and always believing that there will be a new dawn.
Tough Girl Podcast
Jen Scotney boasts an impressive record as an ultrarunner with podium finishes in the 108-mile Montane Winter Spine Challenger South and the 190-mile Northern Traverse. She is host of the Resilience Rising Podcast, a running coach, writer, Mountain Leader and yoga teacher, which have followed her career as a human rights lawyer. Jen has appeared in magazine features for Runner’s World, Trail Running and Women’s Running. She has been a guest host on the Wild Ginger Running YouTube channel, and a previous guest on the Tough Girl Podcast. Jen crewed for John Kelly’s successful Pennine...
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Risa August - Removing limiting beliefs, shifting her perspective, and embracing an expansive life…. Author of 'The Road Unpaved: Border to Border with a Brain Tumor and a Bike’.
Tough Girl Podcast
In this episode, we delve into the extraordinary life and inspiring journey of Risa August, a multifaceted individual based in Colorado, USA. Risa wears many hats - she's a Gestalt practitioner, a captivating speaker, an author, and a passionate patient advocate. Her story is one of resilience, marked by her decade-long battle with a pituitary tumour and a rare disease, Acromegaly. Risa shares candidly about her experiences, offering profound insights into overcoming adversity and embracing life with unparalleled vigour. Risa's journey into the realm of personal transformation began with her...
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Bailey Seamer: Hiking Australia's East Coast (14 Months, 5,000km) for Mental Health Advocacy.
Tough Girl Podcast
In this inspiring episode, we sit down with Bailey Seamer, an extraordinary individual who undertook a 14-month, 5,000km hike along Australia's East Coast, from Wilsons Promontory to Cape York, all in the name of mental health advocacy. Bailey's story is one of resilience, determination, and hope, as she uses her journey to raise awareness and support for mental health issues. Diagnosed with a major depressive disorder at just 14, Bailey has faced significant challenges, including managing an all-consuming mental illness and dealing with the impact of bi-polar disorder. Despite these...
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Shafeeqah Gordon - Trail Runner from Cape Town, South Africa: Pushing Limits on the Trails and the Importance of Community
Tough Girl Podcast
In this episode of the Tough Girl Podcast, we sit down with Shafeeqah Gordon, a passionate trail runner from Cape Town, South Africa. Shafeeqah shares her journey, from playing netball as a child to discovering the freedom and challenge of running through her university cross-country club. Over the years, running has become an integral part of her life, and she hasn’t looked back since. As a leader for Tuesday Trails, a group dedicated to the joy of trail running, Shafeeqah is all about building community and encouraging people to get outside. Her work as a mountain guide and sports...
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Amanda Harris: Overcoming Adversity with Adapted Cycling, Fundraising, and Inspiring Resilience After a Life-Changing Spinal Cord Injury.
Tough Girl Podcast
Join us on this episode of the Tough Girl Podcast as we explore the remarkable journey of Amanda Harris, an adapted cyclist and dedicated fundraiser who has embraced life's challenges following a spinal cord injury. Living in South Wales with her husband and two teenage children, Amanda's story is one of resilience, determination, and breaking down barriers. Originally from Devon and a law graduate from Cardiff University, Amanda has spent over 30 years in Wales. Her life took a dramatic turn after a serious bike accident that resulted in a spinal cord injury. Despite the life-altering event,...
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Dena Lewis: Running for Resilience and Safety - Advocating for Women's Safety and Launching the Running Mate App.
Tough Girl Podcast
In this episode of the Tough Girl Podcast, we speak with Dena Lewis, a dedicated runner and advocate for women's safety based in Florida, USA. Dena shares her 20-year journey in running, which began as a way to manage stress after college and evolved into a lifelong passion. Dena's dedication to running is evident in her meticulous planning and commitment, including her morning routine of fasted runs, coffee, and early starts. Where she runs between 10 and 12 miles per day, 6 days a week. Safety has been a significant concern for Dena, who often runs in the early hours of the morning....
info_outlineIn this special reflections episode, I, take you through my journey over the past six months and share my plans for the rest of 2024. Celebrating nine years of the Tough Girl Podcast, I'm recording from my bedroom on the Wirral, UK, offering a personal insight into my life.
I'll recount my adventures, starting the year in Wellington, New Zealand, and returning to the UK in March. You'll hear about the highs and lows of walking the Camino via De La Plata, dealing with physical and emotional challenges, and my personal health journey, including gut health improvements and medical support.
I'll also discuss the financial challenges of maintaining the podcast, the support from my Patreon community, and my strategies for growth on Instagram and YouTube. With nearly 3.5 million downloads, I'm focused on reaching over 1,000 episodes and continuously improving my craft.
Looking ahead, I'll talk about walking the South West Coast Path, participating in the Armchair Adventure Festival, Tremula Festival in Brighton and continuing my health and fitness regimen. As I prepare for new podcast episodes in September, I'll express my gratitude to you, my listeners and supporters.
Join me for an honest, inspiring, and motivational episode as I reflect on my journey this year and share my future aspirations. Thank you for being part of the Tough Girl Podcast community and for your unwavering support.
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Don't miss out on the latest episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast, released every Tuesday at 7am UK time! Be sure to hit the subscribe button to stay updated on the incredible journeys and stories of strong women.
By supporting the Tough Girl Podcast on Patreon, you can make a difference in increasing the representation of female role models in the media, particularly in the world of adventure and physical challenges. Your contribution helps empower and inspire others. Visit www.patreon.com/
Thank you for your invaluable support!
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Show notes
- Intro
- 9 year Anniversary of the Tough Girl Podcast
- Based on the Wirral, UK
- Recording from my bedroom
- Snake Plant benefits
- Recording from my bed
- Find out more info about me
- Quitting my job in 2013
- Travelling for 2 years
- Starting Tough Girl Challenges
- Taking on challenges from the Marathon des Sables, to hiking the Appalachian Trail in 100 days
- My mission to increase the amount of female role models in the media especially in relation to adventure and physical challenges
- Sharing my adventures
- Sharing my stories on other podcasts
- Ask me a question via Instagram
- Sharing to be more transparent
- Why I’m not complaining
- Recording at the end of July
- Where have the past 6 months gone?
- Starting the year in Wellington, New Zealand
- Listen to the New Zealand episodes
- Back to the UK in March
- Camino V New Zealand
- YouTube shorts and why it didn’t work for me
- Total stats and tracking my walks (distances, accommodation, costs etc)
- Getting stung by bag charges
- The challenges on the Camino
- Emotional wobble
- Dealing with negative thoughts
- Blisters, and feet issues
- Nutrition and food and the challenges and consequences
- Not feeling good
- Am I tired or just being lazy
- Starting to note appreciate what I was doing
- What am I doing? Am I enjoying this? Do I need to take a step back and do something different?
- Having plans change and cancelled
- Cotswold Way with Gemma
- Not being able to make any more decisions
- Watch the Cotswold Way Vlogs on Youtube
- Getting a Drs appointment and having a blood test done
- Blood test results
- Going to AIM - Hoylake
- Using the rebalance bed for sleep
- Seeing Doctors, and naturopath
- All the tests being done.
- Vitamin I
- Needing to improve my gut health
- July…. Needing to make money
- Patreon numbers declining
- Off to Work
- Starting to feel better and having more energy
- Armchair Adventure Festival
- Running an Adventure Planning Workshop
- Live podcast episodes from the festival coming out in the late September
- Walking the South West Coast Path (SWCP) - UK National Trail (630 miles)
- Making my way to Minehead
- Working with ZOLEO #ChallengewithZOLEO
- Not having a hard deadline
- Tremula Festival 20th September, Brighton
- Francesca Turauskis - Advocate for Adventure & Epilepsy, walked the Camino de Santiago solo. May 21st 2019.
- Catching up with friends
- September and planning to be home for October, November and December
- Needing to stop and take a moment.
- Trying to do to much
- Trying to figure out how I can fit everything in
- Mobility training with Franco
- Strength training
- Run club?
- Editing the vlogs for New Zealand and SWCP
- Health, fitness, vitality, strength
- New Tough Girl Podcasts interviewing happening in September
- Podcast numbers
- Coming up to 3.5 million downloads
- Patreon - regular source of income which helps to fund the running costs of the podcast
- Focusing on what I can control
- How can I add value? How can I get better?
- Being able to talk to people
- Goal to get over 1000 episodes
- Instagram - 13.1k followers
- Facebook - over 5k
- Youtube growth….
- Editing and the creative process
- The next reflections episode to happen at the end of the year
- Thank you for listening and for your support
Social Media
Website: www.toughgirlchallenges.com
Instagram: @toughgirlchallenges
Facebook: Sarah Williams